Obi, a consultant with the National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI) in Umudike, Abia State, said honeybees are critical component of the system.

He said as honeybees visits blossoms to gather the nectar and pollen necessary for their survival, they help agricultural crops, home gardens and wildlife habitats flourish.

Obi defined pollination as the transfer of pollen from the anthers of one flower to its own or another flower’s stigma.

Simply put, pollination is the first indispensable step in a process that results in the production of fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds, he added.

He said practical experience has proved that cross pollination of flowers of entomophilous crops by insects is the most effective and cheapest method of increasing crop yield. Besides increasing the yield, bee pollination also improves the quality of seeds and fruits.

Obi said honeybee pollination in crop production could save losses from having low farm output, which is attributed to very low or no honeybee pollination activity at all. By developing the pollination industry, the quality and quantity of production of fruits, vegetables and horticulture sector for producing ‘export quality’ products, including honey, could be increased manifold in the country.

This would not only ensure food security through increased productivity, but also earn millions of dollars in foreign exchange through export of fruits, vegetables and honey. He said honeybee pollination activities for research can benefit large scale growers.

He said the government should implement a support price for honey to support the honeybee keepers (apiarists) as well as to promote the industry.

The cost of planned pollination of plants by bees is recovered by 15 to 20 times over through the value of additional crop yield. The income from agriculture in regions of intensive cultivation, obtained after using bees in plant pollination, is 14-15 times greater than the cost of honey and wax produced.

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), estimates that in the U.S, 80 per cent of insect crop pollination is accomplished by honeybees.

While other insects can also pollinate plants, honeybees are the premier pollinators because they are available throughout the growing season and they pollinate a wide range of crops and can be concentrated whenever and wherever they are needed.